Faithful urged: Fight secularism with ‘basics’

Borongan Bishop Crispin Varquez presides over Mass for the 29th Diocesan Pentecost Vigil held at the Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary Parish in Brgy. Matarinao, Salcedo, Eastern Samar on Sunday, June 4, 2017. ALREN BERONIO/ESTE

BORONGAN CITY, E. Samar — A Catholic bishop has challenged his flock to go “back to the basics of our faith” as a response to the growing secularism in the world today.

Gathered for the 29th Diocesan Pentecost Vigil, Borongan Bishop Crispin Varquez has urged the faithful to appreciate and recover the pillars of the faith: doctrines, sacraments, morality, and prayer.

“Let us remember what the early Church did. The pillars of our faith stood as the cornerstones of the community,” Varquez said in his homily.

He also dissuaded the people from becoming “Catholics by convenience” as he acknowledged that some Catholics proclaim that they belong to the Church but when the Church makes a stand on certain issues, they choose to remain silent.

Speaking to more than three thousand people, he also mentioned how the adults of today fail in one way or another in transmitting the tenets of the faith to the young.

He called on politicians, especially those who studied in Catholic schools, to uphold the Catholic education they received. “It is not necessary to become a Christian just for one to become honest,” added the prelate.

He also encouraged famililes to bring back the altars at home as these are effective ways of introducing the faith to young people.

“If you do not have an altar at your home right now, make sure that you will provide one once you arrive home,” the bishop said.

Now on its 29th year, the celebration gathered more than a thousand clergy, religious, and lay faithful coming from different parishes of the diocese.

Hosted by the Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary Parish in Brgy. Matarinao, Salcedo, Eastern Samar, this year’s Pentecost carried the theme: “Parish, Communion of Communities.”

Before the Mass ended, Msgr. Lope Robredillo, vicar general of Borongan diocese, thanked individuals and groups who made the event “meaningful and successful.”

He also announced that next year’s vigil will be hosted by the Parish of St. Isidore Labrador in Maslog, Eastern Samar. CBCPNews